# what are some pre-CGI movies with great special effects? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 12, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248 "2009-03-12T20:05:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cactus\_waltz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@cactus\_waltz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cactus_waltz)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/1 "2009-03-12T20:05:01Z")
Hello all, It’s 2008 and we have had to suffer through bad CGi effects for quite some time now. But the industry’s getting pretty good at it and it’s nowhere as jarring as it used to be. However, I just saw John Carpenters **The Thing** from 1982 and… Well. Those special effects were really impressive. They just drew me into the experience. So, what are some other impressive handmade special effects? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/2 "2009-03-12T20:10:37Z")
**2001: A Space Odyssey**. **Independence Day** (even though the movie was mediocre, the effects were nice. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/3 "2009-03-12T20:14:55Z")
The Star Wars original trilogy, despite what Lucas would have us believe. ---
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/4 "2009-03-12T20:15:24Z")
Rick Baker’s werewolf transformation scene in [An American Werewolf in London](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbeEvTtB7ts). Almost as good, and quite a bit creepier, is the transformation scene in [The Howling](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CT2Jsx6vKs&feature=related). ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/5 "2009-03-12T20:18:31Z")
**Total Recall** still holds up. ---
**Author:** ![MyFootsZZZ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/myfootszzz/32/12580_2.png) [@MyFootsZZZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MyFootsZZZ)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/6 "2009-03-12T20:19:50Z")
**Cuckoorex** American Werewolf is a good one. How far back can we go? \*\*The Wizard of Oz was \*\*a pretty film to watch. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/7 "2009-03-12T20:23:32Z")
**Aliens**. Over two decades later and it still looks realistic. High quality miniatures and matt painting hold up better than CGI. ---
**Author:** ![Ronald\_C.Semone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/cc9497/32.png) [@Ronald\_C.Semone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ronald_C.Semone)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/8 "2009-03-12T20:25:10Z")
The hurricane special effects for \*The Hurricane \*starring Dorothy Lamour and John Hall (1937) have never been bettered. ---
**Author:** ![palindromemordnilap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/db5fbb/32.png) [@palindromemordnilap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/palindromemordnilap)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/9 "2009-03-12T20:25:21Z")
Not knowing exactly where you start the clock on CGI, I’ll confine my picks to pre-1982 since that’s the date of your example. This won’t be a surprise to anyone, but the original Star Wars was a great leap forward in special effects, way beyond anything that came before. Followed closely by Raiders of the Lost Ark. These movies still hold up in the special effects department, unlike, say, the original Terminator movie, which was great plot-wise and impressive at the time, but if you see it next to T2 it comes across like a high school project. ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/10 "2009-03-12T20:30:59Z")
Haven’t seen it in a while but “Jason and the Argonauts” seemed pretty _up there_ as far as effects goes. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/11 "2009-03-12T20:32:49Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > **Aliens**. Over two decades later and it still looks realistic. High quality miniatures and matt painting hold up better than CGI. That was my first thought as well. The dropship crashing wasn’t all that great, but everything else in it was damn good. I think the apes made for Planet of the Apes way back when still look pretty good. And do not forget the awesomeness that is [Spaced Invaders](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100666/). ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/12 "2009-03-12T20:38:18Z")
> [@Uncommon\_Sense](#): > > Haven’t seen it in a while but “Jason and the Argonauts” seemed pretty _up there_ as far as effects goes. Yup. Ray Harryhausen = Great FX > **[Ray Harryhausen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Harryhausen)** > > Raymond Frederick Harryhausen (June 29, 1920 – May 7, 2013) was an American-British animator and special effects creator who is regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of both fields. In a career spanning more than 40 years, he built upon the techniques of his mentor, Willis H. O'Brien, to develop a form of stop motion model animation known as "Dynamation" and advance the field of cinematic special effects. Though not credited as a writer or director on any of t Inspired ... ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/13 "2009-03-12T20:41:10Z")
_The Invisible Man_ – 1933 My daughter is doing a paper on its effects even as we speak. Very impressive for the time. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/14 "2009-03-12T20:55:53Z")
**Forbidden Planet** – there are a few klunky cartoony scenes, but things like the C57D in orbit over Altair IV, or the ship “making its own eclipse”, or the Krel Monster burning through the door, or the final explosion (viewed silently from 100 million miles away – that was cool. Much better than having it a debris-throwing noisy affair, like they’d do it today) are gorgeous. The guys who did the effects later went on to do the much stupider but still gorgeous **Kronos** , in which they prove that even a featureless box can look impressive as hell if you do it right. **The Day the Earth Stood Still** The original, of course. Gort’s laser-beam eye effect is STILL extremely classy, as is the seamless flying saucer. The low-key but high-quality approach to the effects really worked well. And, of course, the already-mentioned **2001** (for which effects were invented) and the films of Ray Harryhausen. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/15 "2009-03-12T20:57:28Z")
> [@Cuckoorex](#): > > Almost as good, and quite a bit creepier, is the transformation scene in [The Howling](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CT2Jsx6vKs&feature=related). Well, except for the final one…I never could be scared of a were-pomeranian. ---
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/16 "2009-03-12T21:02:49Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > Well, except for the final one…I never could be scared of a were-pomeranian. But she was so CUTE! ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/17 "2009-03-12T21:09:06Z")
Oh yeah, and the effects from Young Frankenstein – scared the hell outa me. ---
**Author:** ![toadspittle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c0e974/32.png) [@toadspittle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toadspittle)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/18 "2009-03-12T21:57:26Z")
I think TRON mostly qualifies, since all but a few sequences were simply clever hand-drawn cel animation. Watching the extras on that DVD, it’s amazing what they pulled off without computers. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/19 "2009-03-12T22:00:06Z")
Since it’s just about that time of year again, how about “The Ten Commandments”? ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2009, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248/20 "2009-03-12T22:11:41Z")
**Metropolis** Simply amazes me for the time period. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-pre-cgi-movies-with-great-special-effects/489248.md?page=2)